This is No Dream
by blackwidow73
Summary: An A/U in which Linda is married to Jimmy Pesto. Linda begins learning the horrible secrets that Jimmy has been hiding from her as their marriage begins to fall apart. LindaXBob
1. Chapter 1

This is dedicated to AKHTS, Audrey, and Kas. For reasons.

Chapter 1:

Goosebumps covered her entire body. The murmurs filling the air around her did nothing to ease the discomfort. She didn't feel pain or anxiety. It felt like she had lost control of her body. Her eyelids finally flickered, allowing her to get a fuzzy view of the group of people gathered around her bed.

"She's up."

Jimmy was watching her. The whole thing was hazy, a fever dream. Linda couldn't tell whether he sounded concerned or if he was simply stating a fact. She wasn't able to ask, there was something that was keeping her from moving at all, as though she were paralyzed.

"Shut up. She's fine."

Edith. Edith was there. That fact should have been more alarming than it was. Linda knew that that was not a good sign. She knew that there was no reason for that old woman to be here. It was just hard to even care. There was a whole swarm of people, they were all around Edith's age.

Her entire body tensed as something scratched down her sides. It tickled, but hurt all at the same time. If she would have been able to move her arms she would have swatted it away.

"What are you doing?" She softly murmured.

Jimmy was on top of her, at least that's what she thought. Her eyes were having a hard time focusing. Mostly what she saw was her husband with different eyes, piercing eyes.

"Just stay calm," someone instructed. She couldn't quite figure out whose voice it was.

oooooo

"Alright, sweetheart," Linda absently said as she stood before the bathroom mirror, applying her make up for the day.

Jimmy, standing behind her, wrapped his arms around her waist and planted a kiss cheek. "I'll see you in a bit," he stated, a smirk on his face.

She stopped what she was doing, setting her brush onto the sink and softly returned the kiss. Turning back to face the mirror, she just stared, trying to figure out what it was that had become of them. It was a little over a month ago that she had had that dream, and it was about the same time that their marriage had taken a wrong turn.

There weren't any real huge changes in the way that they acted towards each other. There was just something different in the way that he would hold her, in the way that they would converse at the dinner table. They never looked into each other's eyes anymore. Long stares and caresses faded to guilt ridden glances and strained contact. Even now he looked uncomfortable, like he was forcing himself to hold onto her for a just a little bit longer.

It wasn't entirely his fault. There was something in her that had changed towards him. She hated it, but that dream, that nightmare made her feel uneasy whenever she tried to be intimate with him. Looking up to him, all she could see were those disfigured eyes staring back at her, she could feel those claw like nails scratching down her sides. Those feelings poured over into the rest of their interactions, such as right now she felt like she needed to crawl out of her skin.

They were only standing like that for a moment, but as he let go of her and walked away she felt as though she had been trapped in his arms for ages. There was a relief that washed over her as soon as she was free.

Maybe it was time to face the fact that their marriage was falling to pieces. Wives shouldn't be waiting anxiously for the moment that their husbands let go of them, and husband shouldn't be treating affection as though it's a chore. She just didn't know what she could do to change things. It wasn't like she could just force herself to feel better around him and he couldn't make himself want to hold her. They were both trying like hell, but it didn't seem to be working. If anything, their little acts were making things worse. What they had given themselves was nothing more than a duct tape fix, temporarily patching up just enough of it so that it barely works until they could get around to actually repairing it.

Linda didn't even bother to finish her makeup. She just left it there, out on the sink. She looked decent enough. It wasn't as if anyone would really notice. Jimmy sure wasn't going to. Besides, the main thing that she wanted to do was try and mask the dark circles under her eyes, and that was the first thing that she had accomplished.

Walking out into the bedroom, she grabbed her purse and slung it on her shoulder. It was pretty early to be heading out now, but she wanted to make sure to leave before Edith arrived.

Edith and Harold were their neighbors. They owned a quaint little art store. They were nice enough. The problem was that once they found a friend they would cling onto them. Almost everyday Edith would come over and ask her personal questions and make obnoxious comments and then leave, telling her that she would be back later.

Sometimes Harold would come along. He seemed to be busy more often than not. He appeared to always be out, to always be doing something. This little old man was so quiet, so reserved, yet he had people to meet up with in every city it sounded. He was constantly traveling. She felt like he was hiding something.

Heading out the door, she stopped and looked around at her surroundings. It was a nice day, rather quiet. The sun was shining and there was a slight breeze. If she had anyone to go with, she would have packed a picnic. Instead, she took in a deep breath and briefly shut her eyes. Just a second to forget.

"Linda!"

The obnoxious voice brought her moment of peace to a screeching halt. She cringed before opening her eyes and turning. All she had to do was feign excitement and think of an excuse as to why she had to leave. That was much easier said than done however.

"Edith!" She exclaimed. "I was just heading out. I was thinking about picking up a few things for the apartment since we can afford it now."

The elder woman laughed. "I've noticed! What did you do? Start paying people to come in and eat?"

Linda forced a small laugh, hoping that her discomfort wasn't as apparent as she felt it was. "Must be why we were broke for a while," she awkwardly joked.

Edith smiled to her. "Well I have to go talk to your husband. I'll let you on your way."

That was the one thing that she was not prepared for: Edith simply leaving her. Most of the time if felt like she would have to beat that woman with a stick to get some privacy. Now though, there was something different in her voice. And the way that she mentioned it, that she had to speak to Jimmy.

Linda also couldn't help but notice that she had glanced down at her belly before she headed into the restaurant. She knew that she had gained a couple of pounds, but she didn't think it was that noticeable. Then again, Edith was there everyday. The old bat probably noticed every change.

She peeked down to her stomach and ran her hand over it, smoothing out her shirt. Her clothing didn't look tight or anything so she shrugged it off and went on her way.

oooooo

After a day of mindless wandering through out the small town, Linda returned back to the restaurant, stopping on the sidewalk and watching the crowd the of people waiting to get inside. As bad as it was, she wished that just once they wouldn't be busy. That way Jimmy would have some time for her. They could finally work on their problems and have the marriage that they had before all of this started.

Looking across the street, she noticed that the small burger joint was empty. Bob's Burgers. Or at least a lot emptier than their place. It looked like a place where she could hear herself think.

She took one last glance at the crowd before turning and heading across the street. part of her felt as though this were cheating in a way. Like she was giving business to the competitors. It wasn't as though Jimmy was failing or anything, it just felt weird.

Entering the restaurant, she scanned the small room. There was a couple of customers scattered within the booths. There was nothing too special about this place, but anything was better than home right now.

She absently sat down at the counter, setting her purse down on the surface before her. She wasn't even sure that she was hungry, but she had nowhere else to go and it was getting close to dinner time.

Bob peeked out into the dining room through the window as soon as he heard the door. He recognized the woman right away, Jimmy Pesto's wife. He had noticed her when the couple was moving into their new place. She seemed cute, cheery, and kind of bubbly. He was actually a little upset when he found out that she was married. He thought that he might have had a chance with her.

Now here she was sitting right in front of him. Her presence caused him a small amount of anxiety. It was weird to him, it made him feel as though he were back in high school. He had to push back those feelings though and act casual.

"What can I get for you?" He asked as he walked out behind the counter.

Linda quickly looked up to him. She wasn't even sure what to say at this point. "I'll take a cheeseburger and fries," she told him.

"I'll have it right up for you," he replied before heading back into the kitchen.

It still felt weird being here. What made things worse was that she was sure that Jimmy wasn't even aware of the fact that she had been gone all day. Or even if he was, he certainly didn't care.

She spent her time sitting there, staring out the window. It amazed her just how many people suddenly started frequenting their place. It felt like there was something more behind it. It didn't make sense to her.

"Here you go," Bob announced as he set the plate down before her.

Linda smiled to him. "Thank you," she said.

"I'm surprised you're over here. I sorta figured that Jimmy would have you helping him out over there with all the customers," Bob mentioned.

Linda shrugged. Originally she did want to help him. She wanted to work and talk with the customers and such. Jimmy just didn't seem to want her around down there with him. It slightly offended her.

"He prefers his coworkers," she answered before eating a fry. "You would think with as cheap as he is he would like the free help," she joked.

"I used to help my dad with his restaurant. It was actually fun at times," Bob explained. He always liked the idea of a family run place.

"Awe! Is that why you got your own place?" Linda asked. She personally thought the whole thing was cute.

"Yeah, I mean, kind of," Bob answered, smiling.

"Jimmy got his place because he thought it was easy money. I went along with it because I thought it would be fun. You know, the whole family being able to work together."

To her, the best thing ever would be to be able to do something with her family. She wouldn't want the kids working all the time, but it would be nice having them there at times. And she would get to work with her husband instead of watching him leave for work everyday, missing out on things in their kid's lives.

"Maybe he'll let you start working with him when he gets used to the business," he suggested, trying to cheer her up a little.

Linda was about to say something, but her cell phone rang. As she pulled it out of her purse, she looked at the caller ID, confused. "I gotta take this," she flatly stated as she got up and went to talk outside.

Bob just watched her with concern. As she talked outside, her expression fell. She was in complete despair. He was convinced that she must have been told that she was ill. The instant that she hung up the phone he made sure to look busy, pretending to be tidying up behind the counter.

Linda slowly walked back into the restaurant, the world a whirlwind around her. The news that she received should have been some of the best in the world - she was pregnant. It was just the opposite. This baby trapped her. She couldn't celebrate this with Jimmy, he would barely acknowledge it at this point. Plus, this was her first time going through all of this, she really did not want to go through it alone.

"Are you okay?" Bob questioned, beginning to watch her closely.

Linda sighed, reclaiming her seat. Looking up to him, she wanted to tell him. She wanted to tell anyone that even had the slightest chance of caring. It wasn't like she could go over and tell Jimmy. Her parents were out of the option because once they knew everyone would know and she wasn't ready for that.

She owed it to Jimmy to tell him first though. Even with the marriage as bad as it was, he deserved to know before anyone else.

"Yeah," she lied, forcing herself to smile. "I just have to go now."

Standing up, she grabbed the burger and took a couple of huge bites before laying money down on the counter. "I'll see ya tomorrow."

Linda rushed out, heading across the street. Bob just stood there and watched her, glad that she said she would return.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2:

Linda wasn't able to tell him that night. She didn't even see Jimmy until she awoke in the middle of the night to see him already asleep.

It was for the best though. She needed to do something special for the occasion. The idea of the baby was beginning to grow on her. Perhaps this was what they needed. Realistically that was never the right answer. A baby never really fixed anything, but this would be something that would make them realize that they really did need to talk and figure out where things had gone so wrong.

Of course, the next morning she was less naïve. Her best chance of being able to tell him would be in the morning because it was the only time that they ever saw each other anymore. That right there should have been a bigger wake up call than it was. They would get ready for the day together, only sometimes that meant getting to eat breakfast together. This was one of those times in which she made sure that they would sit down together.

It wasn't nearly as hard as she thought it would be. All she had to do was get up a little earlier than Jimmy and fix breakfast; french toast and a side of bacon. It was his favorite so it had to work.

"Good morning sleepy head!" Linda cheerfully greeted from the stove as soon as she heard him enter the room.

Jimmy normally loved Linda's energy. She was the reason that he would get through a lot of tasks. However, it was a completely different story at the start of the day. Most times he would just pretend that he wasn't agitated by her over enthusiasm. Lately, that was just getting harder to do. Everything was beginning to be too much for him. The success, he felt, should have made him feel more relaxed, but it was having the opposite affect on him.

"I love you, Linda, but can we please have breakfast in peace?" He requested, his voice riddled with annoyance.

Linda's entire demeanor dropped. "Oh, sure," she replied, doing her best to hide her disappointment.

His attitude didn't completely ruin her plans. She still fixed their plates and sat down across from him, a smile on her face. She made sure to keep her eyes down to her plate. Seeing him irritated would only discourage her, and she really could not try and redo all of this. It was now or never.

All she really wanted was to finally get all of this out into the open. She could tell him about the baby, see his reaction, and then work from there.

"I know that you want your silence this morning, but there is something that we should really talk about," she hesitantly began.

"What is it?" He asked, not even bothering to look up to her as he took a break between bites.

"I think I should start out by telling you that you're going to have to get used to your mornings being interrupted," she mentioned as she set down her utensils and laid her hands on her lap.

It was a shaky start. She was kicking herself for dragging this out longer than it had to be. She should have just said it right then and there. Now she was stuck in this awkward pause, trying to decide whether or not she should even dare to look up and see her husband's reaction so far.

Slowly looking up from her plate, she nervously laughed. Jimmy looked intrigued, more so than she had thought he would be. It was a huge relief to look up at him and not see him glaring. "I'm pregnant!" She gleefully announced.

Jimmy's eyes widened at the news, a smile instantly occupying his face. "Seriously?" He questioned, dropping his fork and standing to his feet.

Linda smiled, tears filling her eyes as she stood. Her arms were open as she watched Jimmy walk around to the other side of the table. Maybe things would be all right after all. Maybe now he would be more willing to sit down and actually talk to her.

That moment of hopefulness was short lived. All she received was a brief and clumsy kiss and and hug before he started for the door. It was all so quick, as if he really didn't even want to be touching her. He just left her standing there

"Well no need to be so affectionate," Linda remarked, crossing her arms as she glared towards him.

Jimmy stopped dead in his tracks, looking back and uncomfortably smiling. He awkwardly scratched the back of his neck. "I just want to go tell Edith and Harold. They'd be excited," he told her.

"Edith and Harold!?" Linda yelled. "I'm the one you should be celebrating with!" She explained as she harshly pointed to herself.

"We will!" He replied as if it were obvious. "I just want to share our happiness right now. That's all."

He was scrambling for words to try and calm her. She had no idea how important this baby was and there was no way that he was about to have her get too upset and have something happen. Edith and Harold had assured him that everything would be okay with the baby no matter what, but he wasn't about to try and take his chances.

Linda stopped for a second, dropping her hands to her sides. She wanted to cry, but she wasn't about to look that weak in front of someone who was clearly against her. Or at least someone who didn't care.

"I'm heading out. I'll be back after lunch since you won't be needing my help," she firmly stated through gritted teeth as she grabbed her purse before storming out of the room.

Jimmy just stood there and watched as the scene played before him. He should have stopped her, or at least tried to. It just felt useless to really try and do anything. If he were to have attempted to apologize she would start demanding answers and he could not do that right now. He could not look her in the eye and lie to her about what was really happening. All he was trying to do right now was protect her.

Linda huffed as she passed him, not even bothering to close the door behind her. She got to the top of the steps and paused, looking back towards the door. For a second, she held the tiniest amount of faith in her spouse. A small sliver of her believed that there was a chance he would walk out and try to stop her and make things right between them.

Her expression softened as she stared back over her shoulder. When there was no sign of him coming after her, she furrowed her brow and marched right back to him. There was no way in hell that she was about to just take this. Not anymore. They had a child on the way and this baby deserved to be raised in a happy home with loving parents. He wasn't going to ruin this for her.

"You were about to just let me leave!" She accusingly shouted from the doorway.

Jimmy hadn't moved from his spot since she had left. He just stood there, shocked that she returned. He knew what he had been expected to do, he just couldn't do it.

"You told me that you were leaving! I thought you wanted your space!" He defensively argued.

"You used to follow me!" She told him, her eyes brimming with tears of hurt and frustration.

Fighting wasn't something that was all that rare between them. That should have been a warning sign for the both of them a while back, but it never got too bad. They were always dumb fights. Linda would get upset and walk out and Jimmy would come after her and they would apologize to each other and then sit down and talk.

That was a different time however, a time when he actually cared about her. Those were the times that small fights would only last a few hours and they would be able to come up with a solution to anything.

Back then it was possible that their problems just weren't as bad. They didn't have much money so they didn't have too much to fight about there. There wasn't a child in the picture yet. They never spent all that much time away from each other. It used to be a lot simpler. Yet somehow, those times should have been harder on them than the present.

Jimmy sighed, sitting down at the table as he looked to her with defeat. "What do you want from me, Linda?" He asked, resigned. No matter what he said he was bound to lose.

Linda took a deep breath, bracing herself for what she might be about to hear. It was something that she hadn't really considered, but this mornings events gave her a feeling that there might be more going on around here. He might be hiding something.

"Are you seeing someone else?"

She was so fearful, so timid, yet so stern as she asked. He hated that she even believed he was capable of such actions. He did used to sleep around, sure, but that didn't mean that he couldn't change his ways.

"No!" Jimmy answered as he stood, almost insulted as if he had the right to be. "I have not even thought about sleeping with another woman! How could you even think that?"

"You never touch me anymore! You're either ashamed or you're guilty!"

His mouth hung agape as he searched for the best response. It was taking too long and he knew that he was only causing her more frustration. There was just nothing that he could say without hurting her.

All she was doing was growing more and more impatient. The fact that he was taking so long to even reply gave her all the answers that she needed. It didn't matter whether he felt guilty or if he was ashamed of her. What did matter was the fact that he wasn't able to speak up and tell her for sure that he didn't feel either.

"You're a dick, Jimmy," she stated before turning and leaving.

oooooo

"Thank you," Linda said with a smile as Bob set the plate down before her.

She had been walking around for a while, trying to clear her head. The fight earlier between her and Jimmy had left her wondering if this was all a mistake. The restaurant was too much for him to handle and now he was taking it out on her.

Even if all of that were true, that little voice in the back of her head reminded her that if this marriage meant anything to him, that he would be trying harder to hold it together. Jimmy would try and close the restaurant one day a week, it wasn't like they couldn't afford it. He would try and have dinner with her here and there.

She was the one that was trying. She was the one trying to work to get passed her problems so that they could be happy. It was just hard when Jimmy clearly wasn't interested.

"I just hope you actually get to eat this time," he replied with a small, uncomfortable laugh.

"I'm sorry about rushing off like that. I had to go talk to Jimmy," she told him casually between bites.

Bob wanted badly to ask her if she was okay. It wasn't like it was a rude question, it just seemed too personal. He figured that if she hadn't brought it up yet, that she probably did not want to discuss it. They had also only really met each other only yesterday. The call that she received seemed rather personal and he did not want to go treading where he shouldn't.

Linda looked up from her plate and softly laughed. He was so awkward, it was cute in an odd way. Charming even. It was obvious he was curious.

"I'm pregnant!" She tried to exclaim, but the announcement fell flat.

Bob was about to congratulate her, but he saw the underlying disappointment. His expression fell right along with hers. He had his theories - this could have been that baby that wasn't planned, that they weren't ready for, she could have had some sort of plans that this baby was hindering.

"So are you and Jimmy excited?" He questioned.

Linda sighed, pushing her plate off to the side and leaning forward with her elbows on the table. "Have you ever had anyone cheat on you?" She inquired.

Bob was taken aback by how bluntly she had asked. It was obvious that this was about her and Jimmy. No one just brought up infidelity as a random conversation starter.

"I uh, I don't think so," he answered after a moment of thinking. There probably had been one or two girls that were unfaithful, he just couldn't think of any on the spot.

"Oh," she replied somewhat disappointed.

"I'm sorry," he softly laughed.

Linda laughed at the realization of what she had just implied with her response. "I just wish there was a way to know for sure."

Relationships weren't really Bob's thing. The most that he was able to offer here was a sympathetic look. "Well, what makes you think that he's cheating?" He questioned.

"You know, the usual stuff," she started with a shrug. "He won't talk to me, or touch me. We haven't had sex in a little over a month. Naturally it's harder to be intimate when he seems repulsed by me."

"The worst part is that I can't even compete," she added, looking up to him.

Bob's heart sank at the fact that she truly felt as though she were being replaced. He had been treated as such - the one that could be easily cast aside and forgotten. It was a feeling that he would never wish upon anyone.

"Are you sure he's not just stressed? Maybe he's just too preoccupied to do anything," he offered.

Stress couldn't be the root cause of all of this. They've been together through stressful times. There may have been times where their relationship had been strained because of it, but they were never torn apart like this. Linda never even felt like they were married anymore, they might as well have been roommates.

"I think Jimmy just got bored," she stated all too casually. "That's what he does, he gets bored and he moves on."

"You shouldn't have to compete for your husband because he's bored," Bob scoffed.

The whole thing sounded ridiculous to him. Jimmy was bored with his marriage so he went out and found another woman. It was something that would happen here and there, but he couldn't understand how someone could get married when they knew that they couldn't handle staying in a monogamous relationship. If he got bored so easily he shouldn't have proposed to her in the first place.

"Like I said, it doesn't even matter. It's not like I'm even remotely sexy right now. All I do is throw up and have mood swings. And soon enough I'll get all fat and awkward," she informed him, obviously bitter as she turned to look at the restaurant, trying to see if she could spot Jimmy.

Eyeing her, he didn't see what she was talking about. She looked fine to him, more than fine actually. She looked amazing. He thought that as soon as he had first seen her moving in across the street.

"You definitely have a chance if you do need to compete," he assured her. It sounded much better in his head than it did out loud.

The statement instantly flattered her, causing her to shift her attention back to the cook. It had been a while since she had been given any real compliments and it felt nice to be noticed for once.

"I don't know," she replied resigned. She did want to fight, but it felt like such a losing battle. "It's not like I have that much time left to compete. In a few months he'll just start growing closer to that bimbo."

The bitterness in her voice didn't surprise Bob. It did however, upset him. Jimmy Pesto had everything that he wanted: the successful restaurant, the cute bubbly wife, and now the baby. And this man was tossing that all aside as if it were nothing, treating his family like trash. Either he was so dumb that he had no idea what it was that he had or he was just that unappreciative of everything he had.

To him, it wasn't worth the fight. No one should be making their spouse have to compete for their attention. And even if by some chance Jimmy wasn't cheating, he did not like the idea that he was acting distant enough to convince her that he was. It just wasn't right.

These were the thoughts that he was going to keep to himself since it really wasn't any of his business. Besides, there was some bias at work here.

"Maybe before you give up, you should try finding out what's really going on," he suggested.

Linda laughed, not at him for trying to help, but because she knew that Jimmy would never tell her what was wrong. It was obvious this morning that whatever secret he was keeping was more important to him than she was.

"It's gonna be hard to do considering that he won't tell me anything," she remarked.

Bob rolled his eyes. He was sort of surprised that she hadn't thought to do this on her own. If he were really that suspicious of his spouse, he knew that he could possibly resort to this. "Why don't you follow him around for a day? See what it is that he is doing? Maybe find someone you know that he doesn't to follow him and report back to you," he said.

Linda shrugged as she turned and looked out the window. "I don't think it would work. I feel like Edith and Harold would pull me away from him too much. They seem to want to keep me busy all day. And if they caught on to what I was doing I'm sure they'd snitch."

"Edith and Harold?" Bob asked, surprised.

"Yeah. Why?" She inquired, her curiosity piqued as she looked to him. The tone in his voice displayed a certain amount of disbelief and distrust that she herself felt whenever she was around them.

Bob shrugged. "I don't know, they just seem, off, to me I guess. They creep me out."

"Me too. She's so nosy. Right after we moved in, she started asking about whether or not we had kids and if we were trying for any and how soon we would be trying. She's more interested in my sex life than my own husband," Linda informed him, almost joking, even though there was a darkness that lingered with the statement.

The more she thought back on that conversation, the creepier it became to her. Who walks into someone's home, goes through their things, and then flat out starts asking about their future plans and their sex life? At first it just came across as a talk held between her and a weird old couple who had no idea what boundaries were. Now, it seemed as though that genuine interest had taken over part of her marriage. Jimmy was spending more and more time with them.

This could have all been some coincidence, but it was all too perfect to her. It was a conspiracy that would keep her up at night, wondering what the hell was going on and why she was losing control of her life so rapidly. Right around the time that she would have fallen pregnant, Jimmy starts hanging out with them more often and all the sudden their restaurant is busy? It didn't make logical sense.

"Maybe they wanna take your baby," Bob laughed.

Bob didn't consider that she might take the joke more seriously than he had, and regretted the comment as soon as he saw fear in her eyes.

"You don't think they would really do that, do you?"

It was irrational to think that this was planned. And part of her knew that. It was all just too much though. As much as she wanted to be able to brush off his words, that joke struck a very tender nerve and she couldn't shake the thought.

"Come on, I can't see those two being able to remember breakfast, let alone being able to come up with some elaborate plan. They're probably just lonely and want to pretend they have a grandchild," he quickly assured her.

She was still in the midst of her mini panic attack as she did her best to really take in what he was saying. They wanted a grandchild. It made sense. They were old and they didn't have any children. For all she knew they could have been senile and harmless. Then again, why would she be getting such a bad vibe from them if there wasn't something wrong with them?

"I guess," she responded, trying to calm herself.

Her gaze averted back out the window, watching the restaurant. Now she really was starting to wonder what was happening behind the scenes. Was it worse than him cheating on her? Something was terribly wrong and she had to find out what.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3:

Waking up, Linda turned over to say good morning to her husband, but she was soon reminded of the fact that he had begun getting up and leaving earlier. It had started about a month ago, and she was still trying to get used to the routine change.

Her daily routine consisted of Edith coming over, making her breakfast, checking up on her and the baby. Linda would then head out to wander around, anything to be away from Edith. It was the beginning of fall so she would walk around and look at the leaves beginning to change, check out a couple of baby stores and such to see what she could get.

She just wanted to make sure to get away from home. It wasn't even really a home anymore. It was simply the place where she slept and was bothered by the neighbor.

On her way back, she stopped in at Bob's. It was becoming part of her normal routine. Most of the time she simply ordered soup and sat there and talked with the other two regulars. It was nice, being with people who weren't fussing over her and judging her or ignoring her.

"Hey Linda!" Mort greeted as she entered the place.

"Hey you two," Linda replied with a smile as she went and took a seat at the counter, the one closest to the window.

"Something wrong?" Teddy inquired, looking up from his plate with concern.

Normally when she walked in, she appeared happy or excited. Today she just seemed tired, upset. It was bothering him.

He wasn't the only one that it had bothered, Bob was concerned. He just hadn't been the one to mention it. If anything, he had enjoyed having her stop in as much as she did. They would usually talk about something random and she would get excited. Once they talked about a dinner theater play type thing she had gone too, and he wasn't really interested in it, but she seemed so happy to tell him about it.

"I think Edith's judging me as a mother," she informed them with a sigh.

The judgement was something new. It was only the past few mornings that she had really received the glares and the snide remarks. It was no secret that Edith did not like her coming over here every day, that was one of the main topics. That and the fact that she didn't seem to be as happy about this baby as she should be. Apparently she was ungrateful.

"That's insane. The kid's not even born yet," Bob interjected, finally joining them from the kitchen.

"Yeah. She thinks I'm not taking care of myself," she explained.

It was hard to believe that anyone could tell her that she wasn't taking care of herself though. Ever since she had found out she was pregnant, she hadn't had a sip of alcohol, there was no caffeine in her system what so ever, she stayed away from fish. She was avoiding all of the things that were bad for the baby and consuming everything the doctor recommended.

"Shouldn't she be judging herself then? Since she's the one basically trying to control your life?" Bob questioned. It seemed to him that someone else was trying to run your life and you failed at something, it was all their fault. There was no way that Edith could judge this woman.

"I wouldn't look now, but I think she's staring at us through the window," Teddy announced, intently watching her as she stood outside.

Everyone else looked towards Edith's place and spotted her in front of her store, just standing there and looking towards them. It did look as though she were truly watching them.

"I think she knows we're talking about her," Mort whispered, leaning in towards them. A wave of paranoia suddenly washed over him.

"I feel her staring into my soul," Teddy said.

"Creepy," Bob responded as he just stood there trying to figure out whether or not she was actually watching him.

Linda shook her head, turning and facing back forward. It still made her cringe, but she was getting used to it. "Welcome to my life."

"Okay, she went back inside," Teddy informed them before letting out a sigh of relief and returning to his food.

"Thank God," Bob stated as he went ahead and turned to the three. "That was weird."

"I wish she would leave me alone," she mentioned.

It wasn't this huge secret that Edith was looking over here for her. It seemed like she was always kind of watching her. There were times now she felt weird taking a shower because she was convinced that there was a legitimate chance that Edith would somehow be watching her.

"Have you tried talking to her?" Mort asked.

"Nah, she scares me too much."

That was the simple answer for it all. She was too scared. If Edith was stalking her now, there was no telling what she would do if upset. This woman had already pretty much claimed the grandmother title when it came to this child and she was not going to allow anything to happen to it. She couldn't imagine what Edith would do if she were told that she was not a huge part of this baby's life. She would lose it. She would go insane.

"She is just a little old lady, right?" Bob inquired with a single laugh.

As uneasy as she could make him feel, Bob knew that realistically there just wasn't much that she could do. That staring was probably the worst. Everything else was just annoying.

"I don't know about that. Did you see the way she was staring?" Teddy offered. "I think she was trying to do something, like curse us."

As much as she hated to admit it, the whole idea did sound more ridiculous to her when she heard it brought up by other people. Maybe she wouldn't actually be able to do much to her. That thought, however, did not bring her any comfort. This was the woman that was feeding her every morning, and the one that would probably be over there with the baby a lot. Edith was too old and fragile to physically harm her, but there was always poison, and hiring a hitman - which was a little far fetched. It was still possible.

"I made a joke today and she looked like she wanted to kill me," she casually informed them.

Mort looked to her, somewhat troubled by the statement. "What did you say?"

"I told her that I wasn't sure if the baby was beginning to show or if I was just bloated from her smoothies," Linda softly laughed before glancing down and smoothing out her shirt.

"I guess she takes her smoothies seriously," Bob joked, still not taking this thing all too seriously. And part of him wanted to make sure that Linda knew how he felt about the topic, hoping that maybe his disbelief would calm her nerves.

"Just like the way you take your burgers," Teddy stated.

"I don't glare at people if they make jokes about my burgers," Bob flippantly countered.

"I don't know, Bob. Remember that one time -" Mort began.

Bob knew exactly what it was that he was talking about, and that was different. Teddy had claimed that there was a rumor that his burgers were made out of human flesh and told Bob that he would remain eating here if that were the case. He was implying that the rumors were true and continued to joke about it.

"No, Mort! I don't!" Bob snapped.

Linda could hear the men beginning to argue, but she couldn't keep track of what it was that was actually being said. Suspicions of poison were still circling her mind, somehow now more than they had been earlier. She was beginning to feel dizzy, nothing too serious, but enough to really play on her mind as she grabbed onto the counter to give herself some support.

"Is it possible she's poisoning me? I've been feeling weird," she mentioned, nervously looking to the others.

"Definitely," Teddy answered without hesitation.

Scaring her was Teddy's last intention. He was worried and he wanted her to make sure that she was okay. And in all honesty, he just never felt right around Edith. There was something about her that made him cringe whenever he had to be by her.

Bob saw her eyes widen, her hands clinging a little tighter on to the counter. The last thing he needed was to have her get too worked up and make herself sick.

"I really don't think she is," Bob said, an attempt to get Teddy and Mort to try and stop talking.

"She knows she can get away with it because no one would suspect her," Mort added, completely ignoring Bob.

"Oh my God!" Linda exclaimed, one hand moving to her stomach.

"No one's poisoning anyone!" Bob yelled, glaring over towards Mort and Teddy. "Now stop scaring my customers."

Teddy got the hint that Bob was mad and set his money down on the counter. "I gotta go. I have to work on a roof in twenty minutes."

"I should get going too. I'm meeting a family in an hour," Mort informed them, following Teddy.

Linda bid her farewells to the two and then watched as they left, waiting for the second that her and Bob would be alone. For some reason she felt silly for wanting to make sure that someone thought she was fine. She had to have that small reassurance to put her mind at ease.

"Do you really believe that she's not poisoning me?" She inquired.

Bob sighed upon seeing the true fear present in her eyes. This was all Mort and Teddy's fault for amplifying her anxiety.

"Look, if you truly think that you're being poisoned, you should go see your doctor. You seem fine to me though," he offered.

She relaxed a little, letting go of the counter. Bob seemed sensible, at least from the times that they had talked she was able to gather that from him. So his say on the matter did mean something to her. However, there was still that feeling that there was something wrong, her instinct telling her to get away from her situation as fast as she could.

"I just feel weird. I don't know what's wrong with me," she told him, resigned.

"Maybe you're pregnant," Bob remarked.

"Very funny, Bob," she replied, smiling to him.

It was obvious that he was trying to help her, and she did appreciate it. It was more than what she was getting at home. If she ever mentioned to Jimmy that she didn't trust Edith, he would laugh at her. He's called her paranoid and told her that she has too much time on her hands. He's blamed her nervousness on her hormones. She might as well have been talking to the wall. Hell, the wall probably would have actually cared more.

"I think it's more than that. I don't feel sick, I just feel like something horribles about to happen," she admitted, hoping that he won't judge her or make fun of her like Jimmy does.

Bob shrugged. He did feel that she was overthinking all of this and that most of her worries were all in her mind, but he couldn't say that. She was clearly scared and she actually felt this woman was out to get her. Really, all he wanted to do was try to get her to see that she didn't have all that much to truly worry about, that she was fine.

"I think the neighborhood witch is getting to you," mentioned, trying his hardest to not sound as though were brushing off her fears.

"Maybe," she responded, not sure how to take his answer.

Now she was starting to listen. "You would have known by now if she was trying to do something to you," he assured her.

She couldn't deny that that was a good point. She had been eating her cooking for a little over a month and nothing had happened yet. If she were trying to poison her, something drastic would have occurred by now. She would have felt it, she would have been sicker than usual.

"That's probably true," she agreed, her mood beginning to lighten.

"It is," Bob stated, softly smiling. He was just glad to see her feeling a tiny bit better.

Linda stood and grabbed her things. Although her nerves were at bay, she still felt she had to look across the street and see if Edith were watching them before she said anything. "I'll try and refrain from her feedings for a while and see if I start feeling better," she said, only halfway joking.

"Good idea."

She started towards the door, looking back to Bob to offer him a smile. "I'll…" Was all she could get out before she froze. There was something seriously wrong. She could feel the room spinning. Her insides felt as if they were being torn apart. She had to grab onto the booth to keep from falling.

As soon as he saw her stop, he went out into the dining room and over to her side. "You okay?"

Linda swallowed, shaking her head. "No. Something's wrong, Bob."

Now he felt bad, thinking that this was partially his fault for getting her so worried. He wasn't the one encouraging her in her conspiracy theories revolving around Edith, but he didn't do enough to stop it.

Awkwardly, but gently, he wrapped his arm around her to support her. "Here, I'll walk you back across the street so that Jimmy can take you to the hospital. Okay?" He offered.

That was all she needed right now, the reminder that no matter what was happening to her, Jimmy would probably just simply ask about the baby and let it go at that. It was nice that he would care about their child, but he didn't care at all about her anymore.

On top of the physical pain that was radiating throughout her midsection, there was now this feeling of impending doom and loneliness. If there was something wrong with this baby, she would have to deal with the emotional side effects all on her own. She couldn't count on him for anything besides financial support.

"Just call me a cab. He won't drive me," she told him through gritted teeth.

"I'm pretty sure this is more important than his restaurant," Bob insisted as he helped her out the door.

To him, he could never imagine just abandoning his wife in her time of need. If she were sick, he would drop everything to make sure that she was okay. That was just how he naturally was. To think that anyone would just leave someone that they supposedly loved while they were scared and/or hurt, sick, whatever, just didn't seem possible.

"Wanna bet?" Linda asked, growing irritated. All she wanted to do was get there and figure out what was wrong already. She wanted the pain to stop.

Bob sighed, stopping right outside the door and feeling his pocket with his free hand to make sure he had his keys. Once he felt them, he retrieved them and locked the door.

"Fine. At least let me drive you though," he insisted as he started walking her towards his car rather than waiting for a cab with her. He wanted to make sure that she arrived there okay and that she would be able to get a ride back home.

Even though she felt a little bad for taking him away from his restaurant, Linda was just glad that she didn't have to be completely alone the entire time. This way, someone would be there with her for a few minutes longer.

"What about your restaurant?" Linda asked.

There was sharp stab that tore through her, causing her to hiss. She leaned into Bob, her head going to his shoulder as she did her best to keep from crying. The scene broke his heart, and all he wanted to do was help her. He just didn't know what else he could do besides give her a ride.

"You're one of my regulars. I'm doing this so I don't lose your business," he answered, trying to make light of the situation.

Linda didn't even respond. She just kept walking with him until they reached the car where he opened the door and helped her into her seat. It was starting to feel like she was about to lose consciousness and the last thing she had wanted to do was use her last bit of strength while still walking.

"Thank you," she softly mumbled.

"You're welcome," he said, stopping only for a second to offer her a look a pity. He then closed the door and hurried to his side.

oooooo

"Mr. Belcher?" The doctor called out into the waiting room.

Bob had been sitting out in the small area for the past few hours, dozing off while he waited to hear something on the woman's condition. He had been worried about her back at the restaurant and wasn't about to leave until she knew that everything was going to be fine.

Plus, as soon as he had gotten her admitted, Bob went and called Jimmy. There of course was no answer. He had to call Edith who went and got Jimmy. As soon as he had told him what had happened, Jimmy simply asked about the baby and then said that he would talk to her as soon as she got out of the hospital. There was no way that he was going to just leave Linda there alone.

"Yeah?" Bob responded, standing from his seat.

"You can see her now. She's just resting," he announced, turning to get ready to lead him down the hall.

"What was wrong?" Bob asked as soon as he caught up to the older man.

"Just some muscle spasms. We're running a few more tests. She won't be able to go home until tomorrow," he explained, scanning the chart as they walked.

Bob felt bad about this. This was all supposed to be Jimmy's place. He was supposed to be the one down here asking all the questions and he was supposed to be the one going to see her and make sure that she was all right. It wasn't that Bob didn't want to do this, he was fine with that. He just felt as though he were invading someone else's territory. Jimmy however, didn't leave him with any other choice. And oddly enough, he didn't seem to care.

"I'll probably be the one to pick her up," Bob mentioned as they came to a stop outside of Linda's room.

The doctor smiled to him with a nod. "We'll call you when she's ready to go."

"Thank you," he replied before heading into the room.

Linda's face lit up as soon as she saw Bob walk through the door. It meant a lot that there was at least one person that actually cared about her.

"You didn't have to stay!" Linda announced with a huge smile.

Bob was taken aback by the sight of her. She looked pale, and there were IVs in her arm. She looked very tired. It was hard to believe that there wasn't really anything wrong. And since the doctor hadn't mentioned it, he assumed that the baby was still alive. The doctor wouldn't be so happy if it had died, and neither would Linda.

The sad part though, was how happy she was to see him. And really, he was glad to be the one to make her that happy, he just didn't want her getting the wrong idea. He wasn't sure why, but that was suddenly a concern for him.

"I'm your ride. I kinda did," he told her with a shrug.

"Oh," Linda replied, her smile fading.

Deep down she still knew that he stayed only because he wanted to. No one was forcing him, and she knew that she wouldn't be going anywhere until tomorrow. His presence there now wasn't important. It was just saddening to hear him try and come up with an excuse for some reason.

"Yeah," he awkwardly said, wishing that he hadn't disappointed her like that. He then took a few steps towards the bed and offered her a small smile. "So how are you feeling?"

Honestly? She wasn't feeling all that great. It was as though she had just gotten hit with the worst flu ever. She was sore, nauseous, tired. At least the baby was alive. That was the only reason she was happy.

"Better. I just wish I knew what was wrong," she answered, her hand moving to the tiny bump.

"They told me that it was some sort of spasm," he stated.

"I don't think I believe that," she quickly countered. She even had to see the sonogram to believe that the baby was still alive. And it just didn't fit. If it were something as simple as a spasm, it had to have been one hell of a spasm.

"Well they're running more tests."

It didn't make too much of a difference to her whether or not they were running more tests, but she did appreciate that he was trying to help her feel better. At least, that was how she took the comment.

There was something though that he had failed to mention, Jimmy. She hadn't really expected her husband to be there, but she did wonder if Bob tried to talk to him.

"Did you let Jimmy know what happened?"

Bob sighed, hating that he would have to tell her that he refused to come see her now. She was having a rough day and he didn't want to make things worse for her.

"He said he'll talk to you tomorrow. And that Edith and Harold would stop by and see you tonight," he explained.

"What a surprise," she bitterly spat.

Of course Jimmy didn't want to be there, and of course that creepy couple wanted to check up on her. Now she would have to be stuck in a hospital room with the two. At least at home she could come up with an excuse as to why she would have to leave or this or that. Here, there was no reason for her to leave.

"You need me to get you anything?" Bob questioned, feeling bad.

"No, I think I'm fine. I'll probably just sleep most of the night," she answered, her smile returning.

"You want me to stay until Harold and Edith leave?" Bob offered, wanting to at least be able to do something for her. It was also pretty obvious that the couple freaked her out, so he thought that maybe his presence would ease the stress a bit.

"You don't have to do that," she flippantly responded, even though she really wanted him to stay.

"I don't really have anything going on tonight," he assured her.

"Neither does Jimmy," Linda quipped, wanting it to be a joke but her bitterness shone through.

That little statement struck a nerve within Bob. It didn't disturb him so much as it angered him. He just couldn't allow Linda to see that, so he did his best to cover up his feelings.

"I'll just go sit over here. I'll wait until visiting hours are done. That way you don't have to be alone with Edith," he stated, motioning over to the chair beside the bed.

She could tell that she made him slightly uncomfortable with her last remark and softly laughed. It wasn't funny that she had made him feel uneasy, but it was oddly funny how hard he was trying to help. It was weirdly funny that this man who would serve her lunch cared so much about her well being.

"I'm sorry about all of this," she told him.

Bob shook his head as he took the seat beside her. "It's not your fault." He wasn't sure of what it was that she was truly apologizing for, but either way she didn't owe him one. If anything, he owed her one for allowing Teddy and Mort to get carried away earlier and for not being able to get Jimmy down here.

"Thank you," Linda said, watching him with a soft smile.

"You're welcome," he replied, returning the smile.

This time, he knew what she was thanking him for, and he was just glad that she didn't have to be alone right now. Everything was going to be okay.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

He never came. Jimmy Pesto did not even bother to come see his own wife at the hospital. Linda wasn't even sure what was more upsetting here, the fact that he wasn't there, or the fact that she wasn't surprised. His absence was something that she had grown used to. It was getting to the point where his presence made her nervous.

It had been a month since she had returned home. The most he had done was ask her whether or not the baby was okay. Nothing about her, no apology for not being there. All she wanted was a simple gesture to see that he still cared, but she received nothing of the sort.

Now, she was stuck in bed with cramps while her husband, if she could even call him that anymore, was out with the neighbors. They were down the street at the bar having a good time while she was worried sick that there still might be something terribly wrong with this baby.

Scanning the room, she looked for something to take her mind off of her current situation. There wasn't much of anything, but she did spot something sticking out of Jimmy's pants that were crumpled on the floor. It was a little notebook that he had left in the back pocket.

She knew that she should respect his privacy, allow him to be able to do things without her. This though, was all becoming too much. His entire life was becoming a secret to her, and it was tearing them apart. All she wanted was a chance to see what it was that was so much better than her, or who, if that were the case. All she wanted was to know why she was being cast aside like this.

Carefully, she got out of bed and stood there for a second, looking around as if there could have been someone there to catch what she was about to do. That was something else that had been bothering her lately, this feeling that she was constantly being watched. The only time that she really didn't have it was when she was away from home. That should have been more alarming to her than it was.

Finally deeming the room safe, she went over to the article of clothing and sat down beside it. She had to take a breath to calm herself before she went and retrieved the small notebook from his back pocket. There was something about this that felt so wrong, as if this were nearly as bad as what he had done to her.

Opening it, she started skimming through the pages. Her eyes widened with fear as she discovered what was written in those pages. There were dates, events that he shouldn't have been able to plan for, but he very well did. There were things in there that suggested that he played a hand in a lot of the things that had been going wrong.

Linda got up, keeping the book with her as she headed to the nightstand where she grabbed her phone. She needed to take photos. If Jimmy somehow found out what she saw, she knew that he would do something to try and keep others from believing her.

Once she got her pictures, she returned the book to its place and hurried down the stairs and out the door. She wasn't completely sure of where she was going, but it didn't matter. All that mattered was that she got out of this place and away from Jimmy. Even if that meant freezing to death and ending up in a bad neighborhood. Anywhere was better than here.

Heading out the door, she spotted Bob locking his door as he prepared to leave. This was her chance to tell someone about her new found discovery, someone that would actually believe her, or at least try to understand her.

"Bob!" She called before crossing the street.

He looked up, seeing her rushing towards him in a nightgown and slippers. The scene was both odd and concerning to him.

"What's wrong?" He asked, taking a few cautious steps towards her.

Linda wanted to be able to just spill her guts to him right now, tell him what she saw and exactly what happened and how it happened, but she couldn't. They were standing outside in the middle of the night and she really didn't have all that much time to explain what was wrong. Jimmy and the neighbors would be back in a couple of hours.

Glossy eyes looked up to him as she stopped before him on the sidewalk. There had to be something that she could tell him right now. She could start with the fact that she was about to ask for a ride to a hotel, that she needed to get away from this psycho before it was all too late.

"I think Jimmy's up to something. I don't know what, but I don't think he wants me or the baby alive. He wants to use this baby for something and I don't know what to do," she just blurted out to him in hopes that he wouldn't think she was completely insane.

The only thing he could do was stare. Perhaps there was something to what she was saying. The way she was acting she had to have seen something, heard something. Whatever it was, it scared her to death.

Things had been that way since that night at the hospital. She hadn't been coming by like she used to. He supposed that maybe she just wasn't feeling that well. Whenever she did come by, she seemed distant, like there had been something wrong. There had to have been something going on between her and Jimmy, something seriously wrong. Wrong enough for him to just not show up at the hospital to see her.

"What do you think he wants to do?" He asked her, not sure how to be acting right now.

Linda sucked in her bottom lip as she glanced over her shoulder. She knew that there was no way that Jimmy, Edith, and Harold would return this early. Jimmy, like her, liked to drink. He would never decide to just leave and come home before midnight. The thing that caught her attention was nothing more than a simple, random car that was passing. Her paranoia was getting to her.

"Can we go somewhere else and talk about it?" She requested.

Bob caught onto how scared she was, how jumpy. It was starting to make him edgy as well. It was making him nervous. Whatever it was that scared her, it was big and he had to make sure that she would be okay, safe.

"You need me to take you someplace? Or you can stay with me if you want," he offered, feeling more and more awkward about the fact that he suggested his own place.

He shifted his weight onto his other leg as he looked around, Linda's unease beginning to wear off on him. "I mean, I don't have much room, but you know. It wouldn't be too bad for a night or two," he added as though it made the original offer sound better.

Linda softly laughed. She knew what he meant, and thought it was mildly amusing that he felt the need to clarify himself.

Normally she wouldn't want to just intrude like that, but this was about keeping her baby safe. She was willing to go anywhere besides home at the moment.

"Are ya sure you'd be okay with me staying with you?" She inquired.

"Yeah, I mean, as long as you need," he told her. He knew instantly that he might regret that, but it couldn't be all that bad. He did like her.

Linda was about to thank him, but suddenly realized that she had spotted him as he was walking out of his place, wearing a coat and holding his keys. He was going somewhere.

"What were you getting ready to do? Because I can be packed by the time that you get back," she stated.

"Well I was just gonna go to the store, but if you need me to stay with you, I can save that for another time," he answered.

Linda shook her head, glancing back to her place. She knew that she did have some time, and she really didn't want to inconvenience Bob, especially when she was asking such a huge favor of him.

"How about you go do that and I'll pack and then when you get back I can come over?" She suggested.

"Do you really feel safe doing that?"

In the back of his mind, he really didn't think that there was too much too worry about with Jimmy, in terms of hurting her that was, but he knew it wasn't good for her to be so rattled. And his trip to the store wasn't really all that important. He just needed to get a few things for a guest that would be over in a few days.

It took her a second to respond, but she did with confidence. "He won't be back for a while."

Bob nodded. "Alright then, I'll make sure to be quick at the store. I'll come get you as soon as I'm back."

"Thank you!" Linda replied before hugging him.

Bob stood there, taking a moment to return the sign of affection with a clumsy hand that lightly set on her shoulder.

"Uh, sure," he replied.

Linda pulled away from him and quickly headed back to her place, leaving Bob to just stand there for a second and wonder what it was that he had just gotten himself into.

oooooo

Knowing that she wouldn't be sleeping here tonight was one of the best feelings she had ever had. It was as though she had just escaped death. She didn't have to fight alone anymore, she had one person on her side.

Standing over the open suitcase that was placed on her bed, she started to wonder whether or not Bob even believed her. He was there for her at the hospital, and he seemed to put more stock into her fears after that day. What she was about to present to him however, seemed a bit ridiculous even to her.

The difference between Bob and Jimmy though was that she wasn't afraid to tell Bob about things like this. When she mentioned anything to Jimmy, there were a lot of times where he had laughed at her or told her to stop being dramatic. Sure, this time he was probably just covering up something. There were times though in which she would present to him legitimate fears and he would shrug her off as if it didn't even matter.

Right now, she could go up to Bob and tell him that she was convinced Jimmy had been abducted by aliens and she were living with his alien clone and the alien was the one that knocked her up and now there was a Nazi after her baby. Bob would look at her like she were insane, and he might laugh a little, but if he saw that she was actually afraid, he would do more than just tell her to stop it. He would explain to her why that was irrational and try to get her to calm down. He would ask her if she was okay.

It was in all of the little things like that that told her she and Jimmy were never meant to be. They loved each other, and perhaps if things went a little differently, they could have lasted a year or two longer. This distance however, had really opened her eyes to all of the flaws in her husband - the fact that he could be a jerk, that there were a lot of times in which he put himself before her, that there were quite a few times in which he refused to take her seriously.

Sighing, she looked down to her wedding ring. It was there, and she didn't quite know why anymore. He never treated her like a wife anymore. The most interaction they had were passing words before bed and in the morning. Those instances were even becoming more rare.

Linda turned and looked up to the picture of them on their wedding day. It was sitting on the dresser, facing the bed. There they were with their bright smiles, eyes full of joy, the naivety still implanted within them. They really thought that they were soulmates, or at least she thought that.

Taking a few steps towards the photo, she wore a grin full of nostalgia as she began to play with the ring on her finger. She would always love him, and she would always cherish what they once had. But now, she had to move on from him. That was why she had to remove her ring and set it down on the dresser before the picture.

"Goodbye, Jimmy," she whispered with a sigh.

oooooo

"Here, let me grab that for you," Bob offered as he took Linda's suitcase for her.

At first, the weight of the bag was somewhat unsettling to him. It suggested that she might be there for more than just a few nights. At the same time, he would rather have her here than down at some hotel alone.

Bob opened the door and began to make his way inside. Once he passed the entrance, he sat her things down and waited for her to enter so that he could lock the door. What Linda had told him sounded a little far fetched, but if these people really were dangerous, he wasn't about to take his chances.

"Here," he said, getting her attention to show to her that he was making sure to lock the door.

The gesture did bring her some comfort as they started up the stairs. However, she needed something else to think about - a distraction. That was when she noticed the gate at the top of the stairs. It wasn't being used at the moment, just leaning against the wall. She started looking around the place for whatever would need a gate. That was when she began looking for some sign of a dog or a cat, mostly a cat. Something about him made her think that he was more of a cat person than a dog person.

Reaching the top of the stairs though, she saw no such sign. There were a few toys that she could spot from the living room, but no animal and no cage so far.

At the end of the hall was an open door that revealed what looked like a child's room. Inside there was a crib, a small dresser, and a play pen. She didn't want to snoop, but it was odd seeing a child's room and no child. There was never any sign of there being children here, at least not while she was down in the restaurant.

It was weird to her, how suddenly she could see how much she didn't know about this man. She had been a regular at his place, talked to him everyday. She knew that he was the type of man who would set aside everything to help someone and that he was the type that would follow a dream. She also knew that he had a restaurant because his father owned one, and that he worked with his father when he was younger. She knew that he wanted his kids to someday work with him, but that he wanted to treat them better than his father treated him. That seemed like a lot to know about a person, when it was almost nothing.

What was even more confusing was the fact that even after knowing so little, she trusted this man. And perhaps, she even felt she knew him better than she knew Jimmy anymore.

"That's my daughter's room," Bob told her.

He had been standing in the living room, about ready to laugh at the fact that she had been peeking around. It didn't bother him, he knew that she would eventually find out about Tina. She wasn't this huge secret. She just wasn't brought up too often down in the restaurant.

"Oh," Linda replied as she turned to face him. She was embarrassed that she had got caught looking somewhere she shouldn't.

"Her name's Tina. I get her on the weekends. I hope you don't mind," he explained, realizing that he had forgotten to mention her when suggesting she stay here.

Linda glanced back into the room and then looked to back to Bob. She wanted to ask him what the situation was here. A little baby, she didn't mind that. She was about to have one of her own. It was the woman that bothered her. The last thing she wanted to do was step in on someone else's territory and cause unwarranted jealousy.

"What about Tina's mother?" She questioned.

Bob instantly spotted the fact that she didn't feel all that comfortable with not knowing the situation between him and the woman. And it made sense, it was probably something that he should have mentioned as soon as he noticed her peering into the room.

"We're not together. She barely even wants to talk to me," he assured her.

It wasn't something that he ever liked to discuss. His ex-girlfriend broke up with him because she was tired of her life with him. She needed to move on and do stuff, well she needed to move on and do one of his best friends was really what she meant. By the time that she had decided to leave him for his friend though, she found out that she was pregnant and the man wouldn't date her anymore.

There was a blood test, she was trying to prove to the other man that even though she was four months along and they had only been sleeping together a couple of months, that it could be his. Turned out, surprise surprise, that it was Bob's.

"Oh, I see," Linda replied, taking the hint.

She felt bad making him visibly upset by bringing up old scars. It wasn't her intention. However, she was relieved to hear that there wouldn't be another woman around here that she would have to explain her presence to.

Bob just nodded, setting her things in the doorway to the bedroom. It wasn't something that he wanted to talk about right now. Margaret was still a bit of a sore topic, and probably would be for quite some time.

"I'm gonna let you have the bedroom. That way you can sleep or rest or whatever and we won't get in each other's way," he explained.

She walked further into the living room and scanned the area. It was small, but it was cozy. There wasn't much to it, a couch, a chair, table, tv - the basic setup.

"Are you sure about that? I can take the couch," she told him, continuing to scan the place.

"You can have the bed. I fall asleep out here a lot anyways. I watch a lot of late night movies," he explained.

She didn't believe him, but she could tell that he was set on the sleeping arrangement. Besides, having the bed sounded so much better, Bob wouldn't be waking her up when he would have to get up before her in the mornings or when he wanted to stay up later. And she would receive more privacy this way. Besides that, it sounded a lot more comfortable in there. Being sore lately made her appreciate her bed so much more than she used to.

"Thank you," she replied.

Starting to feel awkward, she went to her bag and got her phone. "I have some things I want to show ya. If you think I'm crazy, then I'm crazy," she began.

Bob saw something in her eyes when she stood and turned to face him, something that contradicted her demeanor. She appeared calm and collected, yet staring into her eyes he could see how deathly afraid she truly was.

"But if you think there's something to this, I need you to tell me," she firmly told him.

"Come here, we'll sit down and you can tell me whatever it is," he offered, motioning towards the couch.

Bob led her over to take a seat. Something told him that this would take a while. This was much better than awkwardly standing by the hall though. At least now it felt as though they were somewhat comfortable with each other.

As soon as Linda sat down, she took a second to ready herself. She was beginning to feel like she was being monitored and that whatever she told Bob tonight, Jimmy would know. He would know what she's showing him and everything she's saying. It was rather dramatic to think that way, but she wouldn't be all that surprised if she were correct.

"The night that could have been the only night I would have conceived, it was rather, let's say… interesting," she started.

"Oh my God. I really don't want to hear about that," he protested, thinking he was about to hear about some kinky thing they did.

Linda shook her head. "No, it's not that. While we were having dinner, Edith unexpectedly stopped by with this dessert that had a weird taste to it. I don't remember much of anything except for this nightmare where I woke up in the middle of some weird orgy. There were naked old people everywhere, it was gross."

"I'm not sure that's much better," he responded.

Linda ignored the comment and looked down to her phone and started going through the pictures. "Jimmy had assured me that night that he had told them not to stop by and that it was our night. It was also the last night that we could even be in the same room without things being awkward."

Looking up, she held out the phone to Bob, hand was slightly trembling as she nervously awaited his response. So far he looked like he was listening, trying to not judge her. There wasn't this vibe that got from Jimmy all the time, one that told her to shut up and leave him alone.

"As I was going through his planner, I saw some notes he wrote, things for Edith to get for that dessert she brought over, a time in which we had to finish dinner by," she explained. "And he had rushed me a bit, I remember. I was asking me how it could take someone so long to finish a piece of chicken, then he made some rude comment about my eating habits."

Bob took the phone and started going through the pictures. It didn't look like much of anything, but he could see where she was coming from, it did look like he had done some planning with all of this.

The more he looked at the scribbles in this man's planner, the more peculiar it all appeared to him. Why write down specific desserts and measurements? Why was it important to call the neighbors on such and such date when it seemed as though he was with them so often? Then random meetings with Harold? Something didn't add up to him. He wasn't going to tell her all of that though, her nerves were frazzled enough.

"You're not crazy," was all he told her as he handed back the phone.

Linda softly laughed, not sure whether she liked that someone was able to assure her that she was sane, or that she should be concerned that her fears had been confirmed.

"Everything from the past few months makes sense now," she confessed. "The blackout, the claw marks down my back, the cramps. That creep did something!"

Bob looked to her, concerned and confused at the same time. "Claw marks?"

Linda nodded. "There were these huge scratches down my back. They were awful. It was like Jimmy hadn't trimmed his nails in months."

Bob hummed, looking off to the side. The more that he heard about all of this, the more that he wanted her out of that house and over here with him, or anywhere for that point. Just as long as she was away from Jimmy.

"Is the baby okay?" He asked.

Linda's expression grew somber, her hand moving to her belly. The doctors all told her that the baby was fine. There was a heartbeat and everything seemed to be developing as it should. Deep down though, she felt there was something wrong, horribly wrong. It was like her body was trying to reject the baby.

"They tell me it is," she answered, trying to sound somewhat cheerful.

Bob could tell he went somewhere that he shouldn't have and decided to try and change the subject.

"If you're not feeling well, I can help you to the bedroom, help you unpack, get you whatever you need," he offered.

Linda shook her head as she stood. "No, I can go ahead and take care of everything. Just make sure that you grab what ya need for the night. I might lock the door, if that's okay with you."

It was silly, but she needed to feel secure. If both the entrance and the bedroom door were locked, she felt like even if someone did try to come in, she would have some time to find a way to escape before they actually got to her.

"I'm just gonna grab some stuff from the closet. You can take anything you need from there too," he said as he stood. "And do whatever you have to do. Lock the door, put something in front of it. I don't mind."

"Thank you again, Bob. I don't know what I'd do if I had to spend another night over there," she said before leaning in and pressing a small kiss on his cheek.

"Don't mention it," he replied, watching her head towards the door and grab her suitcase. He could feel a small bit of regret beginning to creep in.

oooooo

Linda opened her eyes to a bright light. It took her a moment to be able to focus, but she was soon able to see that the light was coming from a stained glass window. There was a faint murmuring in the background. The only thing that she could make out was that it was a woman talking. She sounded angry? Maybe? Perhaps it was more of a disappointment. Either way, she didn't dare say a word.

She looked over to the side. Kneeling beside her in the pew was her sister, Gayle. She was about seven, and praying very intently. She looked scared.

"You shouldn't even be here," Gayle nervously remarked, trying her best to avoid looking at her sister.

"What do you mean?" Linda questioned.

"She means that you need to repent!"

Linda's attention quickly shifted to the nun standing before the pew. She was older, wrinkles accentuated as she scowled.

"You don't belong here with that foul thing!"

Linda was about to stand and ask what she was trying to say, but that was when she followed her gaze, realizing that she was looking at her belly. The baby. She was talking about the baby.

"What's wrong with my baby?" She demanded.

The nun looked to her with disgust. "Ya need to get out of here. You're not welcome."

oooooo

She awoke in a cold sweat. The pain still strong and her mind racing. That dream had to mean something, it was all so cryptic. That wasn't any different from how her life had been. Jimmy was acting weird and ashamed while the neighbors, especially Edith were doting over her. All she wanted was to be left alone by everyone but her husband. It was turning out that she would receive the very opposite, Jimmy paying all of his attention to his restaurant while Edith tried to be her sole caretaker.

The only person that she wanted to talk to anymore was Bob. He might have been a little socially awkward and he might not know the right words to say or the right things to do, but he was there for her. Any time that she walked across that street he was willing to listen to her. And she would never forget that he was allowing her to sleep in his bed while he himself stayed out on the couch all because she was scared.

Bob was the only one that she felt she could trust anymore. Teddy and Mort seemed pretty trustworthy, but Bob was the one taking her in and being there for her. She felt bad, but she even wished that he were here in bed with her. She knew that she wouldn't be able to sleep tonight and it would be nice to at least not be alone.

Sighing in defeat, she climbed out of bed and went to poke her head out the door to peer into the living room to see if her friend was still awake. If he was asleep she could go grab a snack and head back to bed.

"Bob?" She whispered, doing her best to stay quiet.

There was no response as she examined the dark room. He had to have been sleeping. The discovery deeply disappointed her, but she went on her way to the kitchen.

Linda stopped for a second in the doorway, starting to reach for the light switch. She stopped, reminding herself that this wasn't her place, and that it might be rude to turn on a light that could wake Bob. On that note, she also made sure to browse for the cheapest snack she could find.

"Linda?" Bob asked, switching on the light as he stood in the doorway.

Linda turned around from her spot at the cabinet. His presence instantly filled her with guilt. "I'm sorry, Bob. I just wanted a snack. I didn't mean to wake you," she said.

Bob honestly was slightly annoyed. He was tired and he missed his bed. He just didn't want her to know that. She wasn't here just for fun or simply because he was bored at home. She was worried about herself and her baby and she didn't trust Jimmy anymore.

If he turned her away and something happened, he would never be able to live with himself. And more than that, there was something about her. He liked having her around. He liked when she would drop by the restaurant and talk to him and liked her weird, quirky sense of humor. Really, he missed the old days when she would just come in as a customer, not because she was there less but because she was happier then. He wanted to do whatever he could to get her back that way.

The only problem was that he had to be careful. She was a married woman, having another man's baby. There were boundaries that he should not be overstepping, besides having her stay with him a few nights.

"It might help if you have the light on," he dryly explained.

Linda turned back and grabbed the saltines. She didn't know, but Bob never ate those, he never even bought them for himself. He just made sure to pick them up for her when he had run to the store right after she had asked to stay.

"Look at that, you were right, it was a lot quicker," she nervously laughed, looking to him.

"Are you alright?" Bob asked, already knowing that the answer was no.

"Yeah!" She answered, doing her best to sound sure of herself.

Her nerves were frazzled causing her to jump at any little sound and movement. She was second guessing every move that she made and making sure to lock every door behind her. The stress had begun taking its toll on her body. She was well aware that she was thin for someone in her condition and she was losing color in her skin. There were constant dark circles under her eyes.

Staying here was helping her a bit. Bob was doing what he could to make her feel secure. No matter what he did though, there was always going to be a small threat to her. She was right across the street from Edith and Harold. She wasn't even sure that she could trust Jimmy anymore.

Bob sighed, seeing through her lie. As much as he wanted to sleep, he figured that she might need someone to sit up with her for a few minutes. She looked jumpier than usual and it concerned him.

"I think I saw that they're showing A Nightmare on Elm Street tonight. It should be starting here soon, I'm gonna go watch it. You can join me if you want," he offered.

Maybe it wasn't best to suggest a horror movie, but it was a movie that would be playing and it was the only thing on right now that seemed somewhat appealing. And maybe if she got scared from something in the movie it would distract her from her fears in real life.

Linda hesitated to answer. On one hand, she was exhausted. This was going to be the first night, it should be at least, where she could get some decent sleep and not have to worry about what she was going to wake up next to in the morning. There was this odd fear that she had started developing - she was convinced that one of these mornings she would wake up and Edith would be there. Here, she shouldn't have to worry about that so much.

On the other hand, she was still shaken from both the dream and the revelations from earlier. She was afraid of what was wrong with the baby and what had been done to it. That was something that she could not escape. Being alone with those thoughts was the most uncomforting position she could possibly be in right now.

"Sure," she answered, in the hopes that maybe she could somehow doze off during the movie.

Bob nodded, slightly disappointed. He did understand though and he figured that maybe he could doze off here and there until she actually headed to bed.

"I'll go grab some extra pillows and blankets for you," he stated before leaving the room.

Linda sighed, setting the box down onto the counter as she watched with a soft smile. As bad as she felt, she also felt somewhat lucky. Sure all of this bad stuff was happening to her, but at least she had someone she could go to, someone that actually cared. She just had to remind herself to not take advantage. Not that she would try to take advantage of him, it seemed like something he would easily allow to happen. She was already started to plan something special that she could do for him as a thank you.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5:

Bob awoke to the sunlight blaring through the window. Groggy, he sat up and stretched from his position on the couch. Looking around, he was momentarily confused by the sight of the pillow and blanket on the opposite end of the sofa. That was when he remembered, Linda, she was staying there with him. They must have both dozed off during the movie last night.

At first, he wasn't all that worried about her absence. She probably just got up and relocated to the bed. He did begin to grow suspicious though, once he reached the kitchen. There was bread, eggs, sitting out and bowls. Linda had been in here trying to prepare something.

"Linda?" Bob called from the doorway, still scanning the room with confusion.

There was no response. He tried calling out for her once more as he turned and started towards the bedroom. Opening the door, he found exactly what he had expected, nothing. A vacant bed. Now, he was beginning to grow worried.

"I'm okay!" Linda finally yelled from down the hall.

Bob headed down the hall, reaching the bathroom where he knocked on the door. He knew that he should be respecting her privacy, but he wanted to make sure that she was actually okay. He was there when the illness had begun and he really thought that he should be keeping an eye on her just in case.

"Are you sure you're okay?" He questioned.

"Do ya need in here?" Linda responded, sounding weak.

Bob decided to just simply enter the room. It wasn't the best choice to make, but once inside he saw that he was right to just walk in on her. The sight caused him to pause, scared. All he could do was gasp.

Linda sat there on the floor in front of the toilet. One arm draped over her belly as one gripped the side of the tub as if she had attempted to get to her feet. Her face was pale and sweat covered, dark circles consuming her once vibrant eyes.

It had been a long morning for her. This wasn't anything too new, although it seemed to be getting worse. The nausea, the pain, the dull throbbing in her temples. It felt like the worst flu that anyone could ever experience.

"I'm sorry, I just tried to make you breakfast and I guess I wasn't up for it," she explained.

"We're going to the hospital," he stated as he made his way to her side.

Linda shook her head as he helped her to stand, his arm securely wrapped around her. He was allowing her to lean on him as he began to slowly walk her.

"They'll tell you the same thing they've been telling me. It's nothing, go get some rest," she drawled on, growing somewhat loopy from exhaustion and dehydration.

He felt bad, but all he wanted was to make sure that she got whatever help she needed. At the same time, he knew that she was right. As much as he wanted to make sure she was all right, he didn't want to torture her by making her sit in a waiting room for hours like this only to get poked and prodded at for no reason.

"Fine," he sighed. "At least let me get you to bed. If you're not better in a few hours though, I'm taking you to the ER."

"I usually just take a nap and it goes away for the rest of the day," she explained as they turned and entered the room.

The statement caused Bob's heart to break a little. _Usually_. That meant that this happened a lot. She had to suffer through this a couple times a week, or maybe even more. Worse, Jimmy was down in the restaurant all day. He probably never noticed. Or if he did, he didn't care.

"Just, lay down for a while then," he absently stated as he helped her into bed.

How could one not notice their own wife getting sick like this? He started wondering what other things had been going on, unnoticed. Now he was afraid to ever send her back there. What if she were to have some serious complications? She could just bleed out to death. She could pass out and seriously injure herself. It could be hours before anyone would notice.

Linda laid there, feeling almost like a little kid. She was sick, being tucked into bed and told to take a nap. It was nice though, for a change. When Ginger was pregnant, her husband was constantly doing things for her. He would run to the store for her and give her little back rubs and sit up at night with her when she couldn't sleep. She hadn't gotten any of that. Hell, she couldn't even get a simple "I love you" anymore.

"I'll go get you some water," Bob flatly stated before leaving the room, only stopping to take one last glance at her in the doorway.

"Thank you," Linda softly replied.

She didn't really know or care about what he was saying, all she knew was that he genuinely cared about her and that was enough.

As she began to doze off though, she thought back to the dream that she had the night she supposedly conceived. Just like it were happening all over again, she could feel the claws gliding over her skin, the brush lathering her in paint, covering her in random symbols. Despite the disturbing sensations, she fell asleep before Bob could return.

oooooo

As soon as Bob stepped out the door, making sure to lock it behind him, he saw Jimmy crossing the street to meet up with him. Part of him was hoping that maybe he was making his way there for something else, or maybe he misjudged the direction and only thought he was actually towards him.

"Bob?" He called, his voice laced with a genuine concern that struck him..

Bob sighed, stopping and turning towards the other man. All he could think about was the way that he must have been mistreating Linda, and how long this must have been going on. He knew that there was nothing he could actually do to Jimmy without getting in trouble, but he sure as hell didn't have to stand here and talk to him.

"What is it, Jimmy?" He sharply questioned.

Jimmy stopped before him, making sure to look around and check his surroundings. He was paranoid. Linda was gone and Harold was not happy about that. He had told him that he had better not even think about returning home until he found out what was happening.

"Is Linda staying here? She'd mentioned you a few times and I figured that if she was heading anywhere, she'd be here," he asked, the fear ringing loud and clear in his voice as he apprehensively scratched at the back of his neck.

"I really don't have time for this right now," he responded as he began to turn and leave. "I have a restaurant to open."

"I just want to talk to her," Jimmy demanded.

Looking at him, Bob never would have thought of Jimmy as being dangerous. An asshole, sure, but not dangerous. That was what seemed off to him. Either way, he wasn't about to be his messenger. He had to remind himself that Linda ran away from this man for a reason.

"Look," Bob started in defeat. "If she's willing to talk to you, then you can talk all you want. It's not my say. But until she's ready to talk, I'm not going to tell her that she has to see you."

Jimmy's shoulders slumped at the response and he looked down towards the ground for a second. He knew that this was all his fault, but what he did, he couldn't take back. And it was for the greater good. Before all of this, they had nothing, now they had money, a name for themselves, and they could have as many kids as they wanted. They needed this.

Sooner or later he figured that she would understand. She was just a little over emotional right now given her current condition. That's what he attributed her little runaway to at least.

"So she is with you?" He inquired, lifting back up his head.

It was weird seeing him like this, so desperate. Bob wanted to tell him yes, assure him that she was okay, but at the same time, he didn't deserve to know. If he really cared all that much, it wouldn't have gotten to the point where she felt the need to escape.

"I gotta go," Bob said going to unlock the door.

Jimmy nodded, taking that as a yes. As long as he knew where Linda was, everything was going to be fine. All he would have to do is go and tell Edith and Harold of her whereabouts and let them know that Bob would be her caretaker now.

oooooo

It was around dinner time and Linda sat up in bed, staring down at her phone. She wasn't sure what she was waiting for honestly. A call maybe? Something from Jimmy asking her where she was?

She had woken up from her nap only a couple of hours ago and since then had been anticipating a message from Jimmy. As much as she didn't want to speak with him, she greatly desired for him to notice her absence. She wanted to know that part of him still cared, that he was worried that she wasn't right there with him.

The longer that she had to wait however, the more hope she lost in the marriage that barely even existed anymore.

Disappointed, she set the phone back onto the nightstand and laid back into the pillows. Maybe it was all for the best. She believed that this man was involved in harming their unborn child, he really shouldn't be getting a second chance. Still, it would have been nice to see him at least try for another chance. If for nothing more, just so she could deny him.

"Oh my God," she said to herself.

She had to stop all of this, the wanting this and that from Jimmy. She had to force herself to stop caring. They were done. He was out of the picture. It would be nice to see him care and it would be nice to see that he missed, but she shouldn't need it so much. Jimmy was like a childhood friend that moved away while you were in elementary school - there were fond memories, but they were gone. You weren't friends anymore. They had no effect on your life anymore and you really shouldn't care about how they feel about you.

Linda got out of bed and headed out to the living room where she opened the curtains and looked down to the restaurant across the street. It was busy, just like it had always been. The line was out the door, there were people eating outside at a few of the tables.

She was mad at herself for wanting to spy on Jimmy right after she had just explained to herself that he didn't matter anymore. Her curiosity was too strong to fight, and it was certain that it would stay that way for a while.

What got her attention was seeing Jimmy step outside. It was something that he did here and there when things got super busy. He would go and mingle with a few of the customers and take a few orders for drinks and what not. Witnessing such an event wasn't what bothered her, what did though was the way he went about it. He appeared genuinely happy. He was actually giving these random people more attention than he's given her in a long time.

This was all the proof that she needed to know that she made the right decision in leaving. As much as the sight angered her, it made her feel better to know that she could justify her feelings towards him.

"Feeling better?" Bob questioned, entering the room. He had just closed up the restaurant.

Linda turned and nodded. "A lot better."

Bob looked her over, seeing that some of her color had returned, and the dark circles under her eyes had disappeared. Along with that, she was out of bed, so that had to be good.

"I cleaned up the kitchen, so I can make us something to eat if you're hungry," he offered.

Linda smiled to him, shaking her head. "I'm actually not hungry, but thanks."

He figured that she probably still wasn't feeling completely well and went ahead and took a seat on the couch. "Let me know when you want something," he told her as he began flipping through the channels.

Linda sighed as she walked around and plopped down onto the chair. "Ya think he even notices I'm gone?" She asked.

Bob froze for a second, wondering if he should mention the incident that occurred earlier. It might have been nice for her to know that he did seem a little worried, but at the same time, he didn't want to freak her out by letting her know that he in fact knew where she was. It wasn't like this was the place for her to really hide considering that it was right across the street and he would see her sooner or later, but she was still so jumpy.

"He actually asked about you today," he answered, trying to be as casual as he could about it.

Linda's demeanor lifted as soon as she heard that he was at least aware of her leaving. Sure, she didn't really want to talk to him anymore, but she wanted to hear that he regretted chasing her away. He messed up and she wanted him to suffer a little for it.

"What did he want?"

Sighing, he set the remote down beside him and gave her his full attention. "He wanted to know if he could talk to you."

She wasn't sure how to take the news. Part of her was glad to learn that Bob told him no. He kept the man from entering the house and didn't give into him. It gave her a stronger sense of security.

On the other hand, she wanted to know what it was that he wanted to discuss with her. Was it an apology? Was it to try and convince her to return? And if he had really wanted to talk to her, why didn't he try calling her or anything?

"Does the schmuck miss me?" She questioned, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips. She decided that she should just focus on the fact that he wanted to talk to her but couldn't.

"I guess so," he replied, not really knowing what to say.

"Good. Serves him right," she harshly stated.

Bob just smiled before looking back to the television. At least she appeared to be happy, that counted for a lot.

"Now do you wanna eat?" He tried again, seeing if her appetite had been tied to her mood.

"I do actually," she firmly answered.

"Come on, I'll go make us something," he told her, standing to his feet.

Linda followed him, still smiling over the fact that for once, Jimmy might have felt a tiny sliver of what she had been forced to feel by him.

As they were walking though, she looked over to the clock and realized something. "Shouldn't you still be down in the restaurant? It's only six."

"Oh, yeah, I uh, I closed up a little early. I wanted to check on you," he told, trying to play it off as nothing. "Make sure you weren't dying."

"I see," she laughed, actually quite touched that he saw this as more important than staying open.

"Yeah," Bob flatly responded as he began digging through the fridge for something to make.


End file.
